I've been metal detecting on and off since the early 1970's. I started with a Relco Compass in 1971 and had that about 10 years. I took a long break while raising my family and then bought a Fisher about 9 years ago. I took another short break when I moved to GA. I recently jumped back into the hobby when I bought a Minelab Vanquish 440 about 2 years ago. I loved that machine but recently upgraded it to a Nokta Makro Legend. So far I am loving the Legend. It's trickier to use but I love the flexibility and durability of the Legend.